State trade insurer fails to recover overseas debt worth W1.4tr: data

South Korea’s state-run trade insurance firm has failed to retrieve some 1.4 trillion won ($1.2 billion) so far spent to cover local exporters' losses in their deals with foreign companies, data showed Tuesday. The Korea Trade Insurance Corp. also known as K-Sure under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, mainly offers guarantees to banks that extend loans to Korean overseas developers that require large-scale and long-term financing and issue bonds to exporters. But it also offers

MarketOct. 13, 2020

LS Cable & System Asia’s operating profit soars 827% on-quarter

LS Cable & System Asia announced Tuesday that the company‘s operating profit in the third quarter recovered from that of the previous quarter, jumping by 827 percent. The South Korean company’s operating profit in the third quarter reached 5.1 billion won ($4.4 million), while sales marked 145.9 billion won. Compared to the same three-month period last year, the company‘s operating profit decreased by 20 percent, when the sales increased by 6 percent, according to the co

IndustryOct. 13, 2020

Yoon under siege in Assembly audit over hedge fund fiasco

Troubled hedge fund mis-selling scandal that led to losses for South Korean investors and the fund managers’ alleged collusion with ruling party lawmakers and former Cheong Wa Dae officials were at the center stage during the parliamentary audit on the Financial Supervisory Service on Tuesday. FSS Gov. Yoon Suk-heun pledged to take stern actions against those responsible for the mis-selling, as the financial watchdog‘s investigation into managers such as Lime Asset Management and O

MarketOct. 13, 2020

Korean shipbuilders likely to win more orders for LNG ships this year

South Korean shipbuilders are expected to win orders later this year to build liquefied national gas (LNG) ships in Africa, analysts said Tuesday. In the January-September period, local shipbuilders fell far short of achieving their annual order targets as the new coronavirus pandemic continued to affect the shipbuilding industry, according to their order data. Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering received $4.5 billion worth of orders in the first nine months, achieving 29 percent o

EconomyOct. 13, 2020

SK Innovation’s battery project in Georgia wins state support

SK Innovation’s battery project in the US has garnered support from a state official who called the project an “economic game-changer.” In a recent column posted on Main Street News by Pat Wilson, Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Economic Development, the official endorsed SK Innovation’s construction of two battery plants, worth $2.6 billion, to be completed in Jackson County, Georgia, by 2023, citing the economic opportunities they have already generated and

IndustryOct. 13, 2020

GS Caltex links drone and self-driving robot for delivery service

GS Caltex said Tuesday it has combined drones and self-driving robots to establish contact-free logistics platforms for islands and mountainous areas. According to the South Korean refiner, it held a drone delivery test event at its gas station in Yeosu, South Jeolla Province, to test the economic feasibility of the automated delivery service. During the test, a customer living in a nearby island placed an order through a mobile app of GS25, a convenience store chain owned by GS Retail. The

IndustryOct. 13, 2020

Seoul stocks turn lower late Tue. morning on virus resurgence

South Korean stocks turned lower late Tuesday morning, as investors went risk-averse over the local resurgence of the new coronavirus. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) lost 14.43 points, or 0.6 percent, to 2,389.3 as of 11:20 a.m. The KOSPI fell back into negative terrain after opening a tad higher following the overnight Wall Street rally. Investor sentiment worsened as the country's new COVID-19 infections bounced back to the triple digits, stoking fears that the p

MarketOct. 13, 2020

Jeju Air applies for grant, Eastar Jet to make more job cuts

Low-cost carrier Jeju Air is poised to receive a government grant to keep the business afloat, according to industry sources, as another budget airline, Eastar Jet, will proceed with further job cuts on Wednesday. Low-cost carriers along with the entire aviation and travel industry, have been reeling from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic that has sharply cut travel domestically and internationally. Jeju Air has applied for the grant known as the key industry stabilization fund, which is wor

MobilityOct. 13, 2020

Seoul stocks snap 8-day winning streak on virus resurgence

South Korean stocks ended their eight-session winning streak Tuesday, as investors went risk-averse over a resurgence of the new coronavirus. The Korean won fell against the US dollar. The benchmark Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) fell 0.58 point, or 0.02 percent, to close at 2,403.15. Trading volume was moderate at about 715 million shares worth some 10 trillion won ($8.7 billion), with losers outnumbering gainers 504 to 322. Foreigners bought a net 209 billion won, while instituti

MarketOct. 13, 2020

BMW Korea donates 12 cars to schools for research

BMW Korea said Tuesday it donated 12 cars to be used for research and study to high schools and universities that specialize in automobiles. The 12 BMW vehicles, which include BMW Minis, were delivered to five high schools, five universities and two government entities, including Korea Transportation Safety Authority and Korea Petroleum Quality & Distribution Authority. “The donated cars would be the driving force for the students to take a step further toward their future dreams,

MobilityOct. 13, 2020

Massive cash floating around stock markets after BTS agency's IPO subscription

Tens of trillions of won are floating around stock markets after last week's fierce competition for the subscription of Big Hit Entertainment, the management agency of K-pop superstar BTS, data showed Tuesday. Retail investors, including BTS fans, chipped in 58.4 trillion won ($50.8 billion) in the agency's two-day subscription from Oct. 5-6. Of that amount, about 26 trillion won stayed floating in cash management accounts (CMA) and investor deposits, according to the data from the Korea Finan

MarketOct. 13, 2020

NTS returns W300b tax to overseas funds after losing lawsuits

South Korea’s tax agency has returned over 300 billion won ($260.89 million) of corporate tax to overseas funds over last five years, after losing lawsuits related to tax returns.　 According to data compiled by the National Tax Service, NTS had a total of 14 administrative litigation cases regarding overseas funds and lost six cases between 2015 and 2019. The tax authority reimbursed a total of 314 billion won of tax receipts over the period, according to the reports submitted to ruling

EconomyOct. 13, 2020

[News Focus] Korea No. 2 in OECD in growth of property taxes

SEJONG -- Compared with other members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, in recent years South Korea saw its property taxes grow at the second-fastest rate. Taxes levied on property in Korea -- including real estate and other wealth -- came to 3.3 percent of the gross domestic product in 2018, the latest year for which figures are available. By comparison, those taxes amounted to 3.144 percent of the nation’s GDP in 2017. The increase -- 0.156 percentage point

EconomyOct. 13, 2020

Banks' household loan growth still higher in Sept. on home-backed lending

South Korean banks' household loans continued to grow at a fast pace in September largely due to accelerated home-backed lending amid soaring home prices, central bank data showed Tuesday. Outstanding bank loans to local households came to 957.9 trillion won ($832.5 billion) as of end-September, up 9.6 trillion won from the previous month, according to the data from the Bank of Korea (BOK). It slowed from an all-time high of an 11.7 trillion-won gain in August but still marked the second-large

EconomyOct. 13, 2020

Posco International supplies parts for Vietnam’s first EV

Posco International said Tuesday that it has won an order for electric vehicle parts from Vietnam’s automotive manufacturer VinFast in partnership with Korean parts firm Erae AMS. It is the first time for the trading company to supply auto parts to VinFast. Vinfast is Vietnam’s first automaker, with investment from Vietnamese conglomerate Vingroup. The halfshaft supplied to VinFast is a component that acts as a drive shaft in an electric vehicle. The product is to be supplied from

IndustryOct. 13, 2020

S. Koreans spent record on Netflix in Sept.: data

South Koreans' card payments to Netflix reached a fresh high of 46.2 billion won ($40.2 million) last month, data showed Tuesday, a nearly twofold jump from a year earlier. An estimated 3.36 million people here spent the record amount in September on the popular video streaming platform, according to app tracker WiseApp's data based on local payments made through credit and debit cards on Netflix. Last month's figure marks a jump from the 24.1 billion won spent in September last year by an est

TechnologyOct. 13, 2020

T'way Air to deploy 2 passenger jets to carry cargo

T'way Air, a South Korean low-cost carrier, said Tuesday it will deploy two passenger jets as cargo planes as it strives to survive the coronavirus crisis. T'way Air will begin using two of its 27 B737-800 passenger jets to carry cargo on the Incheon-Ho Chi Minh City route in early November as the COVID-19 pandemic has driven down travel demand and its earnings, the company said in a statement. The company will place the cargo, such as textiles and electronic parts, on the seats of the two B7

MobilityOct. 13, 2020

FDI pledges to S. Korea up 43.6% in Q3 despite pandemic

Foreign direct investment (FDI) pledges to South Korea shot up 43.6 percent in the third quarter of 2020 from a year earlier, data showed Tuesday, as the manufacturing segment drew a massive investment commitment. Asia's No. 4 economy received $5.23 billion worth of FDI commitments over the July-September period, compared with $3.61 billion logged the previous year, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. But in the first nine months of the year, the FDI pledges edged down 4.4

EconomyOct. 13, 2020

S. Korea seeks balanced regional development under New Deal projects

SEJONG -- South Korea plans to pursue balanced regional development under Korean-version New Deal projects that aim to boost growth of the coronavirus-hit economy, Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Tuesday. In a policy meeting chaired by President Moon Jae-in, Hong said the central government will give local governments more leeway in implementing the projects. In July, South Korea said it will invest 160 trillion won ($137 billion) by 2025 under the bold stimulus package that will create 1.

EconomyOct. 13, 2020

[Monitor] Sales at duty free stores in Incheon Airport plunge 90%

Data submitted by the Korea Customs Service for Rep. Kim Soo-heung of the Democratic Party of Korea in time for the annual financial audit showed that the amount of sales made at duty free stores in Incheon International Airport plunged nearly 90 percent in June compared to a year ago. Overall operation at international airports has been suffering due to travel restrictions worldwide amid the COVID-19 pandemic.  (khnews@heraldcorp.com)

IndustryOct. 13, 2020